


A World On Hold

by ThatScottishShipper



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Crack, Crystal Tower (Final Fantasy XIV), During Canon, Eulmore (Final Fantasy XIV), Female Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers Spoilers, Funny, Gen, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Lalafell Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Light Angst, Nonsense, Patch 5.3: Reflections in Crystal Spoilers, Silly, Spitefic, The Author Regrets Nothing, What Have I Done
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:07:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25865620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatScottishShipper/pseuds/ThatScottishShipper
Summary: The city was in panic. Flaming balls of fire fell from the sky. The Scions were under attack from warriors from another existence.But the Warrior of Light could not proceed.*Based on the Author’s woes - what is it like for the WoL not being able to get into a Dungeon because of gear restrictions.**Patch 5.3 spoilers.*
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	A World On Hold

The Warrior of Light, or Darkness, or whatever she called herself these days, stood on the edge of Eulmore. A flicker of panic crossed her childlike face at the sight of the all too familiar meteors plummeting into the faraway ocean where an all too real replica of Amaurot came into view.

Everything was a mess. The people were panicking, glistening gold spectres of heroes raised their weapons to attack, and quite frankly, the Lalafel had quite enough of Elidibus causing havoc inside the bodies of other men, particularly the deceased.

Quite frankly, that was rude.

Determined to take the Chai’s offer of an airship to safety, she ran with her comrades, fellow Scions in arms, ready to take to the skies, and towards their next trial.

But they could not.

Strictly speaking, the  _ Warrior _ could not. As arrows and punches and chakrams reigned all around, she stood exactly where she was supposed to, right by the railing, aiming for the Heroes’ Gauntlet, but something physically and mentally blocked her path.

It was a tad confusing.

“Don’t mean to be a bother, but…” Alphinaud began, barely avoiding an arrow to the knee. His Obsidian Carbuncle squeaked, scattering around his feet to evade enemy fire from casters.

“What’s the hold up?” Thancred finished with more vigour, clearing the way for Ryne with a swing of his gun blade.

The Warrior thought for a spell. However could she explain the figurative and literal barrier blocking her way? A pool of aether erupted from the floor, as it always did, and it always guided the way for herself and fellow adventurers to inevitably big battles.

She always harboured a sense that some skirmishes were likely to be more challenging than others, but while she felt relatively confident this time around, the portal did not.

The Warrior of Light and Darkness, Hopes and Dreams, did not exactly shirk on the Arcanist classes as a fresh eyed adventurer. Her own Carbuncle, glittering like rubies, turned up her nose, displeased by the events unfolding.

Shrugged her shoulders, the Warrior gestured with her tiny Lalafel hand at thin air, much to the confusion of her friends. Raised eyebrows were exchanged, but Alisaie, between sword strikes, got the first word in.

“What does  _ that _ mean?” The Elezen twin mimicked the shrug to get her point across, needing a little more than open gestures for once.

The Warrior sighed, missing the convenience of simply being understood. Digging into the contents of her satchel bag, the red haired Lalafel began to frantically scribble on a piece of paper before stomping past them, shoving it into Alphinaud’s hands.

And just like that, the Warrior of sometimes Light, but mostly Darkness these days was gone, vanishing into thin air as she always did.

Surprisingly, the Scions gained a reprieve as nothing happened in their companion’s absence. No enemies attacked, but the sky continued to spit burning balls of fire to an ominous track.

Alphinaud peered down at the letter, followed by Alisaie, Thancred, Ryne, and of course, Y’shtola and Urianger who had been there the whole time. The note said…

_ ‘Need better gear. _

_ Be back soon. _

_ The WoL.’ _

More first class eyebrowing raising action ensued, the Scions confused by the sudden insistence at such a crucial time.

“A little inconvenient, don’t you think?” Thancred suggested, pointing to everything that  _ screamed _ drama all around them, including Eulmore citizens, who insisted they either felt sad, heard voices, or both.

Urianger offered his two gil. “To prepare thyself for conflict ensures victorious tidings. Perhaps our ally hath...”

The tall Astrologian trailed off, stroking his chin thoughtfully, realising no real explanation benefited the severity of the situation. The Champion of Eorza, and the First for that matter, had hightailed it in the middle of a crisis to go shopping, or something?

All the Scions could only sheath their weapons, and wait conveniently out the way.

xxx

Four fights in The Copied Factory later, with more tomestones than luck on the draw, the Warrior thankfully returned to her friends with a dapper gothic tophat with a cute frilled lace.

The Scions were decidedly neutral about her upgraded fashion sense. Thancred pounded down ale after ale at the bar while Ryne twirled and tossed her daggers with relative ease, entertaining the antsy bartender. Alphinaud sat nearby, flicking through an old Eulmore classic, as his sister faceplanted onto the counter, groaning with absolute boredom.

Urianger engaged in small talk with Y’shtola, ranging from the complex theories of Aether transference between planes of existence to the historical significance of crystals in magick practices.

Small talk.

The portal itself, however, rewarded the change in wardrobe with approval, awarding the Warrior of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, and Heart (but mostly Darkness) safe passage to a primed pummelling.

The Warrior simply rolled her eyes, relieved Eulmore hadn’t burned to the ground in her absence. She rolled up her sleeves, and dragged her band of merry misfits into the portal. It beat dragging strangers in there.

xxx

As things were getting back on course, the Summoner sighed with relief.

Her worries over everything, from the Exarch’s well being to her Scion friends to just not bursting to tears whenever she thought about Ardbert, the Warrior of Light, Darkness and Good Times ascended up the Crystal Tower with her timey wimey cat friend who was too precious for his own good.

While she was confident that blue suited The Exarch, his best Frozen impression did not, and they ran together to put a stop to Ascian shenanigans by their own hands.

Her gear troubles had set her back a few hours, but there was still time to set things right. Her heart swelled at their heart to heart, and every moment with him filled her with a terrible foreboding and dread.

Did Crystal Catboys always crack themselves up like that, or was it just an Exarch thing? Did it provide a plot armour, or was it simply delaying the inevitable?

Her light blue eyes brimmed with tears at the thought.

At any rate, she did not wish to take the risk, even if it meant running on ahead to have a one on one with Elidibert. A talk that led to a dramatic transformation that would undoubtedly become a climactic battle for the ages.

Business as usual.

As Elidibert Though Less Ardbert And More ElidiLight By This Point floated there, confidently awaiting the battle he yearned for, the Lalafel Warrior smirked, strolling over in a fashion that most little league adventurers could only dream of.

Only to hit another cruel wall inside the light.

The adventurer stood there, staring at the Words from Gods Themselves, a warning most likely of the challenge ahead. She was a fully realised Summoner, with everything learned under her belt. What did a deficient number or two matter if she could jazz hands Demi-Bahamut and Phoenix into existence?

She had survived repeated encounters with robots from another reality for Minifillia’s sake. And she was hardly walking into the fight alone, with a chirping Carbuncle that breathed fire, and a whole gang of adventurers with heavy bags under their eyes and the thousand yard stare, a perfect crew.

She clenched her teeth, close to spitting beans. Was her little gothic Lolita hat not enough? She gave up her majestic summoning horn, and all the perks that came with for it, but it was still not enough.

Her eyes awkwardly met Elidibert, the Most Stubborn Ascian Who Ever Lived. He was literally right there, as her Catboy waifu slowly turned to blueberry rock candy downstairs, and the First was literally being overrun with Warriors of Light and meteor showers.

Did The Powers That Be really expect her to…

She tried again and failed. To commemorate the occasion, the poor tired thing pressed her head against the suddenly tangible portal, then let out a 45 second sigh.

Even Elidibert, who honestly rocked his new look, seemed confused. He cleared his throat, unsure of why the thorn in his side stood there, looking thoroughly miserable. “Are we… Are we doing this, or…?”

Regrettably, the Warrior of Freaking Everything Why Can’t She Just Go Home Already And See Aymeric It’s Been An Entire Arc Already shook her head, pointed at the portal, then threw her hands into the air.

If she was the Warrior of anything in that moment, it was the Warrior of Being Done.

Surprised, the Big Bad glanced down at the radiant obstacle in their way, then at his opponent. His new godly voice boomed as he addressed her. “I don’t… Could you not come at me without the… No?” The Ascian-Slash-Primal-EmbodimentOfHeroism frowned. “Will this take long?”

Honesty being the best policy, the Warrior shrugged, wishing the solution were as easy as tomestones raining from the sky, or snapped fingers just removing the problem.

But alas, she was the Warrior of Light, Darkness, Dragons, Azim Steppe and sometimes the Slice is Right, not RNG. Resigned, the Summoner shuffled off to the exiting point, her head bowed dejectedly.

She had to go see a man about such devastation.

As she teleported away, a cheery, chirpy voice rang out from far below the Crystal Towers many layers. “I’ll be right here!”

**Author's Note:**

> I regret nothing.
> 
> So long story short, I was ready to play Patch 5.3 the day it dropped. I waited for my gf to come home so we could experience the much awaited addition to the story together.
> 
> At my first Dungeon, the Heroes Gauntlet, I came upon a dreaded Average Item Number requirement to get in. I was just under five or so to get in, despite being a Level 80 Summoner wanting in a Level 80 Dungeon.
> 
> Suffice to say, I was not impressed.
> 
> I replayed some Eden Raids, most of which ended up being the Nier Automata one over and over again to get tomestones or gear drops to get better stuff to get on with the quest.
> 
> It took HOURS.
> 
> Just as I was relieved to be getting on with the Main Story, I hit another requirement wall for the fight against Elidibus cosplaying as the Warrior of Light. So I had to raid. Again.
> 
> This was at 3am btw.
> 
> Long story short, I did eventually complete 5.3 (bloody brilliant and emotional overall,) but this experience stays with a person. I ended up writing this as I was waiting to get into dungeons to farm for better gear.
> 
> At 3am.
> 
> You can tell.
> 
> The Warrior of Light mentioned in the story is based on my own, which is a Lalafel Summoner. As traumatising as the event was, it did make me thing “what must it be like for the WoL and everyone else in world when they can’t get into raids?” Like, Bosses standing there? The world pretty much ON FIRE?
> 
> I needed to vent, so hopefully, y’all can get a laugh out of my woes.
> 
> You can really tell what this did to me.
> 
> Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it. 💖


End file.
